Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
(1): (“Criminal
Ontario
Unless otherwise notified a photographer
What can I publish?
may take photographs when legally on private Voyeurism”)
Every one commits an offence who,
Photographers
property. Your right to publish photographs is
protected under section 2b of the charter of surreptitiously, observes – including by
What can I photograph? mechanical or electronic means – or makes a
Rights rights and freedoms
visual recording of a person who is in
Assuming no others laws are being broken you Any photograph may be published with these circumstances that give rise to a reasonable
may photograph anything you can see. exceptions: expectation of privacy
Charter of Rights and
Despite common misconceptions this You do not own
Freedoms includes: Would interfere or threaten national
Trespass to Property Act, 2.:
Every person who is not acting under a right or
security authority conferred by law and who,
Everyone in Canada has the fundamental Children
Would interfere with a large number (a) without the express permission of the
freedom of thought, belief, opinion, and Accidents
of Canadian lives occupier, the proof of which rests on the
expression, including the freedom of press and Fire scenes
Name or photo of a minor convicted defendant,
other media of communication. Infrastructure
or charged with an offence (i) enters on premises when entry is prohibited
Residential buildings
Basically this provides every Canadian the A recognizable person endorsing a under this Act, or
Industrial buildings
freedom to take photographs and use methods product or service without model (ii) engages in an activity on premises when the
Criminal activity
to share those photographs. This does not release activity is prohibited under this Act; or
mean that those photographs may be used in Law enforcement officers
Image modified to deliberately (b) does not leave the premises immediately
any and all manners that the photographer The most notable exception and basic rule of mislead or misrepresent what an after he or she is directed to do so by the occupier
wishes though. thumb on whether the subject was legally identifiable person is doing of the premises or a person authorized by the
photographed is considered “reasonable occupier,
Privacy Act expectation of privacy”. Who owns a photograph? is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable
to a fine of not more than $2,000. R.S.O. 1990, c.
The privacy act is often wrongly assumed to Anybody that has a “reasonable expectation Ontario does not have a law that gives each
T.21, s. 2 (1).
provide personal privacy to individuals when in of privacy” cannot be legally photographed, person a right to their image. This means that
public. even if other laws are being followed. an image of a person is solely owned by the
creator of that image.
Where can I get more
In fact the privacy act only protects personal
information that is submitted to the
For example, a couple in an intimate
information online?
embrace cannot be photographed from the A notable exception to this is when a
government. sidewalk through their window. If the couple photographer is working for somebody else. Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms:
were outside and in the same embrace then Then, unless otherwise stated through http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/charter/
Privacy Act, 2.:
they could be photographed legally. contract, the employer owns the copyright to
The purpose of this Act is to extend the present Criminal Code of Canada:
the image.
laws of Canada that protect the privacy of
individuals with respect to personal information
What is publishing? http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/C-46/
Version 1.0
February 10, 2011